


Under the Stars

by silveryink



Series: Start Over [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Avenger Loki (Marvel), Conversations, Gen, Precious Peter Parker
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-01
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2019-07-05 10:42:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15862005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silveryink/pseuds/silveryink
Summary: Loki always found the stars calming. Whenever he had nightmares, or was generally unsettled, he would scale the walls and silently watch the sky. One night, Loki decided to check out what seemed to be sounds of a scuffle. Thus, a simple night of stargazing somehow ended up with a newly forged friendship, and a highly unexpected one at that.





	Under the Stars

The rooftop and the library were his places of solace when his memories returned, vivid and agonising. They mostly tormented him in the form of nightmares, but he often caught himself in the middle of a flashback as well. The others had noticed, and offered their help, but Loki had declined. He knew that it was common to experience such symptoms – he’d done his research – and knew that humans called it Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD for short.

It was a rather accurate description of what he was experiencing.

It had been a while since he’d woken up screaming. His room was just across Thor’s, but he’d reinforced the walls with his _seidr_ to make them soundproof for occasions like these.

His time on the Sanctuary wasn’t the best part of his life. He closed his eyes and tried to regulate his breathing. When he was sure that he wouldn’t be seized by a flashback, he slid off the bed and retreated to the rooftop.

He scaled the walls of the Compound to rest on the rooftop and admire the stars. Stargazing was a habit he had formed on Asgard, when he was a child. He remembered his own chambers, where the ceiling would become dotted with stars at night.

Loki’s mind wandered into more pleasant memories than the one he had dreamt of and he found his eyelids closing. Suddenly, the screech of tires jerked him out of his stupor. He bolted upright and stood on his toes, gazing into the distance. He could hear the sounds of a scuffle, not too far off from the Compound.

He swung himself over the roof and landed in a graceful crouch. He lingered for a moment, wondering if he should change into his battle leathers, and decided that it was the better course of action. He moved forward, and his garb changed in a dim flash of green light.

He changed form into a bat, using their natural abilities for echolocation to find the source of the commotion. He shifted back and hid behind some bushes. A minivan was parked in the middle of a small clearing, and two people were brawling in the dark. One of the figures was lithe and graceful, but the other was larger and stockily built.

The smaller figure fell to the ground with a sharp cry and rolled out of the way of their opponent, who struck the ground where he had been only moments ago. Loki knew of only one person who could have moved so swiftly and fluidly, and it wasn’t an Asgardian. It was Spider-Man. Loki bit back a few choice curses when the door to the minivan opened, revealing two more figures, this time holding weapons.

He knew that it was time for him to act. He stepped into their line of sight and drew their attention to him by creating a sphere of light. The men frowned and aimed their weapons at him. He created an illusion and stepped out of the way as they fired. Twin laser beams passed through the illusion and scorched the road.

Loki smirked as they looked at each other in confusion and used the distraction to summon two daggers. He spun them expertly in his hands and smashed their hilts against their temples. They crumpled immediately.

Spider-Man had taken care of the third goon, who was now laying face-down in the dirt. He pulled off the mask. “Mr. Loki?” he asked in an incredulous voice. They had been introduced after the battle on Titan, when they were riding back on the abandoned ship.

“Just Loki will do,” he said.

“I, uh,” Peter fumbled for words, “How did you…” he gestured at the two unconscious men at Loki’s feet.

Loki held up one of his daggers in explanation. “They’re not dead,” he assured Peter. “I assumed that you’d want them alive, for whatever form of law enforcement you humans have.”

“Yeah,” Peter muttered. He pushed the first goon towards the minivan and Loki did the same to the others. Soon, the three of them were webbed up to the side of the van. “The fluid should last for a few hours,” Peter said with a frown. “It’s summer, the heat makes the fluid dissolve faster. Hopefully the police will be here by then.”

Loki stepped forward and rested a hand on the fluid. He called forth a power that he never would have used in front of the others (except Thor) and used his frost to lower the temperature of the fluid. A thin layer of ice crackled over it, freezing it without making it brittle. Loki stepped back and admired his handiwork before glancing at his hand. It was _jotun_ blue.

“What did you do?” Peter asked curiously.

“I decreased the temperature of the fluid and coated it in frost without making it lose its strength.”

“You mean, it’s not brittle anymore.”

“Precisely.”

“That is so cool,” Peter said excitedly. “How did you do it? Is there a spell or something for it? I don’t know how magic works, so…”

Loki was silent, considering his options. He could avoid the question, or lie, or tell the truth. He didn’t know why he went with the third one. “You know that Thor is an Asgardian,” he began, “right?”

Peter nodded. “Yeah, and that you’re his brother, both from Asgard.”

“I suppose that much is true enough, but I wasn’t born on Asgard.”

“So your parents moved to Asgard? Or did they move out of Asgard? Does interplanetary shifting happen there?”

Loki blinked. “No, actually, it does not. And I’m not Asgardian, not biologically. Thor’s parents adopted me into the family.”

“Oh,” Peter frowned. “But if you’re not Asgardian…”

“There is a race, born on Jotunheim, called Frost Giants. I am one of them.”

“So that’s where you got the ice powers.”

“Well, I didn’t know until a few years ago,” Loki said. “I reacted badly when I found out.”

“That you were adopted?”

“That I was a _jotun_ ,” Loki corrected. “They were, in Aesir tales, said to be monsters. When Thor and I were young, the nursemaids would tell us stories, cautionary tales, with nearly all the villains being Frost Giants. Naturally, I didn’t know what to think when I found out I was one of them.”

Peter frowned. “That’s… that’s not how it works.”

Loki shook his head. “No, it isn’t. I believe you would call it ‘internalised racism’. Wilson and Colonel Rhodes said so, at least.”

“Ah.” Peter grimaced. “They’re right. It’s nasty.”

Peter turned towards the Compound, and the two of them walked back slowly. “But how did you do that thing – you were there, and then you weren’t. Was that teleportation or something else?”

“The illusion?” Peter nodded. “On Asgard, we called it _seidr._ It has different forms, of course, and I guess you humans would call it magic. My mother taught me how to channel it. She taught me everything I know about _seidr._ She herself was a master of enchantments. Thing is, you’re either born with the ability to channel it or you’re not. If you are, it’s usually better to take the opportunity and learn. Though most men thought it beneath them to do so.”

“Gender norms, huh?”

“Well, yes. My mother made sure that I could learn how to use my _seidr_. She was an excellent teacher and ensured that I never regretted learning it. Most people think magic is something evil, something that corrupts. At least, that’s what they did on Asgard. They learned to be wary of it, and rightfully so. In the wrong hands, it can be quite dangerous.

“If a skilled enough mage decided to use their _seidr_ for the worse, it can be quite devastating. But, while it is incredibly dangerous, it can be extremely beautiful. That’s what the heart of her lessons were – to embrace and love what I could do.”

“She sounds awesome,” Peter said, not missing the use of past tense. “So, is there a limit to your magic or is it like in Harry Potter?”

“We don’t wave around wands and chant Latin spells, if that’s what you mean. Not that that isn’t an effective way of channeling your power – it’s rather unique, but most sorcerers feel more comfortable trusting their own selves than magical objects for channeling their power.”

Peter made a strangled noise at the back of his throat. “Oh my god, you know Harry Potter.”

“Of course I do,” Loki said with a wry smile. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“Okay, that’s cool,” Peter muttered, calming himself down. “Okay, okay, back to the topic now?”

“Thank you. Magic does have a limit, actually. It depends on who’s using it and how powerful they are. And, I think, how long they’ve been using it.”

“So how long have you been using it?”

“All my life – a thousand years, and then some.”

“A thousand…” Peter’s voice trailed off.

“And on Nidavellir my powers were enhanced when I held the mechanism together.”

“Isn’t Nidavellir a dying star? Thor said it was.”

“It is. It was used as a forge by Asgard, Vanaheim and Alfheim. Dwarf steel is a powerful material. It’s what Mjolnir and Stormbreaker are made of.”

“Cool,” Peter said. They both spent the rest of their journey back chattering about magic and its properties.

Loki moved to leave Peter at the entrance before scaling the wall again, but Peter followed. “Shouldn’t you go to sleep?” Loki asked. “Tony’s not going to be pleased when he finds out you were up at three in the morning.”

“He’s not one to talk.” Peter swung up onto the roof to sit beside him. “Neither are you, if you’re staying here,” he added hesitantly.

Loki chuckled. “Bold words, little spider. Bold words.”

“Why _are_ you here? I thought you came because you heard noises.”

“That’s because I did. But, I was awake before that.”

“How come?”

Loki wanted to change the subject. He didn’t want to lie to the teenager, but he didn’t want to burden him with his problems. He had enough on his shoulders already.

“It’s not important.”

“Sure it is,” Peter insisted.

Loki sighed. “I’ve been having nightmares. The stars – it’s an old habit. I find it calming.”

“Oh,” Peter said. He glanced up at the sky. “They _are_ beautiful.”

He turned to face Loki. “I get nightmares too,” he admitted. “I don’t tell Aunt May – she has enough to worry about. But Tony made sure that I knew that I could tell him about ‘em. It helps, too. Telling someone.”

“Believe me, anyone I tell would be traumatised by what I dream,” he said, feigning amusement.

“Maybe so, but they’d be glad that you trust them enough to tell them.”

“Thor knows,” Loki said after a long silence. “But he’s been getting less and less sleep as it is, and I didn’t want to rob him of the few hours of rest he gets. He wouldn’t leave my side if I told him. And… it’s nice, but…” he trailed off, but Peter seemed to understand.

The two of them sat in companionable silence. Dawn broke over the horizon, and Peter stood. “May’s going to have my hide for staying up so late,” he mumbled.

Loki laughed. He decided that it was time to put forth the invitation. “Thor and I will go to New Asgard and help the rest of our people, but we’ve decided to stay here for now. Get some well-earned rest.”

“Sounds good to me,” Peter said. “I hope I can visit, once everything’s settled.”

“I’m sure we can arrange for it.”

Peter grinned. “But now, you’re here, and you need a guide.”

“A guide?”

“For pop culture. I henceforth declare that Friday nights are movie nights,” Peter said in a fake British accent.

Loki laughed. “I look forward to them, then.”

Peter grinned and pulled the mask back on, before swinging back into town.

 _I’ll be waiting, little spider_ , Loki thought. _I’ll be waiting._


End file.
